Whether it's a crew of two hundred shooting a cast of thousands on horseback, or a crew of twelve filming one person in a room, each and every successful movie production requires a strong First Assistant Director (AD) at its helm. In this new and updated edition of Running the Show: The Essential Guide to Being a First Assistant Director from Focal Press, veteran First AD Liz Gill walks you through the entire filmmaking process through the perspective of the First AD, from pre-production, shoot, wrap, and everything in-between.
This book provides invaluable insight into working as a First Assistant Director, featuring tricks-of-the-trade for breaking down a script, creating a schedule and organizing test shoots, alongside how to use turnaround time, weather cover, split days, overtime, and continuous days to balance a challenging schedule and get the most from the cast, crew, and the shoot. This new edition has been fully updated and expanded throughout to provide up-to-date coverage on new equipment and software, health and safety considerations and the implications of VFX. This is the essential guide to becoming a successful First Assistant Director, ideal for professional and aspiring AD's seeking to further their career, students of directing and production looking to gain a better understanding of how this department works, and anyone interested in film and TV production.
Preface
Chapter 1. Pre-pre-production
Chapter 2. Pre-production
Chapter 3. Production
Chapter 4. Wrap
Appendix 1. SAG Tier Budget Thresholds
Appendix 2. Filmmakers’ Code of Professional Responsibility
Appendix 3. Some Filmster Jokes
Glossary
Websites and Other Resources
List of Illustrations
Index